Code of Maine Rules
13 - DEPARTMENT OF MARINE RESOURCES
188 - MARINE RESOURCES - GENERAL
Chapter 36 - ATLANTIC HERRING
Section 188-36-01 - HERRING MANAGEMENT PLAN
Current through 2024-38, September 18, 2024
A. Definitions
Herring means Atlantic Sea Herring, particularly the Clupea Harengus harengus.
ICNAF gonad stages are the official stages adopted by the International Commission for the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries in 1964.
Excerpt from ICNAF, 1964, Table 2 definitions:
Stage V. Gonads fill body cavity. Eggs large, round; some transparent. Ovaries yellowish; testes milkwhite. Eggs and sperm do not flow, but sperm can be extruded by pressure.
Stage VI. Ripe gonads. Eggs transparent; testes white; eggs and sperm flow freely.
Spawn herring is a sexually mature herring (male or female) in ICNAF gonad stages V or VI.
Any person or vessel operator in command of any type of gear used to harvest herring.
Management Area 1 is all U.S. waters of the Gulf of Maine encompassed by the shoreline and an imaginary line beginning at the intersection of the 41º 35' N parallel with the eastern shore of Monomoy Island; thence along a straight line in a northeast direction to its intersection with the U.S.-Canada boundary at the point 42º 53' 14" N parallel of latitude and 67º 44' 35" W meridian of longitude; thence in a northerly direction along the U.S.-Canada boundary.
Management Area 1 is subdivided into Area 1A (inshore) and Area 1B (offshore). The line dividing these areas is described by the following coordinates:
Beginning at 70º 00' W Longitude on the Cape Cod shoreline; thence due north to
42º 38.4' N Latitude, 70º 00' W Longitude; thence due northeasterly to
42º 53.0' N Latitude, 69º 40' W Longitude; thence due northeasterly to
43º 12.0' N Latitude, 69º 00' W Longitude; thence due northeasterly to
43º 40.0' N Latitude, 68º 00' W Longitude; thence due northeasterly to
43º 58.0' N Latitude 67º 22' W Longitude at the U.S.-Canada boundary; thence northerly along the irregular U.S.-Canada boundary.
South Coastal Area: All waters west of 70 º 00' W Longitude and south of 41 º 35' N Latitude, to include state and Federal waters adjacent to the states of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina.
Georges Bank: All U.S. waters east of 70º 00' W Longitude and southeast of the line that runs from a point at 70º 00' W Longitude and 41º 35' N Latitude, northeasterly to the Hague Line at 67º 44' 35" W Longitude and 42º53' 14" N Latitude.
Any person who purchases herring directly from a herring harvester for other than their own use and then sells the herring as a wholesale or retail product.
(Gonad Weight/ Total Body Weight - Gonad Weight) X 100 percent.
Sample means a batch of 100 adult herring taken randomly from commercial catch or fish surveys.
To come to shore, float or a dock and offload herring; or to transfer herring at sea to a vessel utilizing the herring for bait.
Exception: Fixed gears may transfer at sea to a vessel utilizing the herring as bait.
B. Permits and reporting
All herring dealers shall obtain a herring dealers permit as part of the Wholesale Seafood License issued by the Department of Marine Resources. There will be no additional charge for this permit. The Commissioner may require that dealer permit holders report volumes of herring bought and sold and other information as required.
All herring harvesters must possess a Herring Harvester Permit on their Commercial Pelagic and Anadromous Fishing License issued by the Department of Marine Resources.
All harvesters must report all landed or retained fish daily to the Department via an approved electronic reporting option by 11:59 PM the day of landing or retention. If no landings or retention occurred on a calendar day, a negative report is required.
Harvesters: See Chapter 8.20(Q) and 8.20(R)
Dealers: See Chapter 8.10 Landings Program
C. Gear and vessel restrictions.
It shall be unlawful to use otter trawls, beam trawls, pair trawls, or midwater trawls to fish for herring within the territorial waters of Maine.
It shall be unlawful for any vessel that exceeds 165 feet length overall (LOA) or no more than 750 gross registered tonnage (GRT) to fish for or take herring within Maine territorial waters or to land herring in any Maine port. It shall be unlawful for any vessel possessing more than 3000 shaft horsepower to fish for or take herring within Maine territorial waters or to land herring in any Maine port.
This rule does not prohibit the landing of herring that are lawfully imported from other countries, territories or states provided the origin of fish is documented.
D. Catch restrictions.
License holders shall be informed by public notice in a newspaper circulated in the area affected of any restrictions herein.
It shall be unlawful to fish for, take, possess, transfer or land in any State of Maine port or facility, or to transfer at sea from any Maine registered vessel, any catch of herring harvested from the following described areas within Management Area 1A during a spawning area closure:
Eastern Maine Spawning Area means:
All waters bounded by the following coordinates:
|
Maine coast |
68° 20.0' W, |
|
43° 48.0' N |
68° 20.0' W, |
|
44° 25.0' N |
67° 03.0' W, |
North along the U.S./Canada border, terminating at the Lubec International Bridge.
Western Maine Spawning Area means:
All waters bounded by the following coordinates:
|
43° 30.0' N |
Maine coast, |
|
43° 30.0' N |
68° 54.5' W, |
|
43° 48.0' N |
68° 20.0' W, |
North to Maine coast at 68° 20.0' W.
Massachusetts/New Hampshire Spawning Area means:
All waters bounded by the Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine coasts, and 43° 30.0' N 70° 00.0' W.
Fishing for herring in Management Areas 1A, 1B, 2 and 3 is subject to the sub-annual catch limit (ACL) and fishing effort restrictions specified by the ASMFC Atlantic Herring Board and the NEFMC in accordance with their respective Fisheries Management Plans (FMP). The ACL is established annually by July 1 for the following year by ASMFC and NEFMC. Any reduction in the harvest will be determined in consultation with the ASMFC and NEFMC. No person shall land herring taken from a management area when 92% of the area's seasonal or sub- annual catch limit will be exceeded or if 95% of the coastwide annual catch limit will be exceeded.
For this period, 100% of the sub-ACL is allocated annually and further sub-divided into two seasonal periods. Season 1 is June 1 through September 30 and is allocated 72.8% of the sub-ACL. Season 2 is October 1 through December 31 and is allocated 27.2% of the sub-ACL. Atlantic herring may only be landed from Management Area 1A on days that have been designated landing days by the ASMFC. All vessels landing herring caught in Season 1 of Management Area 1A in any Maine port will be limited to fishing for and landing herring on days that have been designated landings days by the ASMFC. All vessels landing herring caught in Season 2 of Management Area 1A in any Maine port will be limited to landing herring on days that have been designated landing days by ASMFC.
All vessels landing herring caught in Management Area 1A in any Maine port are limited to one landing per 24 hour period (6 pm to 6 pm).
"At-Sea Transfer": to transfer herring from a vessel to another vessel before the harvester vessel has landed.
"Harvester vessel": a purse seine vessel that is required to report the catch it has aboard (along with effort data under a gear code other than CAR) as the harvesting vessel on its Federal Vessel Trip Report.
"Carrier vessel": a vessel that has received herring from another vessel and is not required to report that catch as its own on its Federal Vessel Trip Report; and, not rigged as a purse seine vessel.
"Purse seine vessel": a vessel currently rigged and capable of harvesting fish with an encircling net with floats on the top edge, weights and a purse line on the bottom edge, and associated gear to set, purse and haul such a net, which may include, but not limited to, a hydraulically-driven block, roller gear, and/or skiff.
"Truck": a truck, as a unit of measurement, is equal to 40,000 lbs.
There are zero landing days designated from June 1, 2024 through June 30, 2024, at 6:00 p.m. Harvest begins on Sunday, June 30, 2024, at 6:01 p.m. and herring may be landed five consecutive landing days, starting on Sundays at 6:00 p.m. and concluding on Fridays at 6:00 p.m. Harvester vessels may not transfer herring while at-sea to a carrier vessel. Carrier vessels may not receive herring from a harvester vessel while at-sea.
No vessel may land, take or possess more than 25,000 lbs per week. No permit holder may land, take or possess more than 25,000 lbs per week.
Exception: Harvesters using fixed gears (fishing weirs, stop seines), and pound nets are not subject to the harvest schedule detailed above. Weekly landing limits apply.
The permit holder must have declared into the Atlantic Herring fishery by April 15th, annually, to be eligible to harvest.
The weekly landing limit is up to 320,000 pounds (8 trucks) per vessel.
Daily trip limit shall not exceed 55,000 lbs per day.
Daily trip limit shall not exceed 6,600 lbs per day.
Carrier vessels shall not operate as a harvester vessel on the same trip when operating as a carrier vessel.
Any vessel may possess herring as an incidental catch and land herring caught in Management Area 1A, 1B, 2 or 3, in any Maine port, as long as such herring do not comprise more than 10% of the total weight of the catch and not to exceed 2000 lbs per trip.
An individual may fish or take by hook and line up to 100 Atlantic herring per day for personal use only.
